Man, 63, shot to death by son in Cockeysville, Baltimore County police say

A Cockeysville man charged in the killing of his father Sunday afternoon turned himself in to Baltimore County police Sunday night, the department announced.

The son, William Leonard Howard Jr., 38, of the 14000 block of Cuba Road, is charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of his father, William Leonard Howard, 63, in the basement of the home about 3:30 p.m., police said. He fled the home but turned himself in to police about four hours later.

The shooting followed an argument that escalated into a fight between the son and his father, who was visiting from his home on Millstone Road in Randallstown, police said. They did not say what the fight was about.

The younger Howard shot his father multiple times and immediately fled in his pickup truck, police said. Other family members in the home called police, but the older Howard went into cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead at the scene. Police initially said he was 64.

The younger Howard is being held held without bail at the Baltimore County Detention Center. No attorney was listed for him, and the line was busy at a phone number listed for the Cockeysville home.